Jessica, Namine, and I went to the hospital yesterday morning because Jessica’s mom Charlene was having heart surgery. We weren’t sure what precisely was being done — from what I understood, it wasn’t even clear yet to Charlene, either — but at the very least, the wiring in her pacemaker/defibrillator was being replaced. I am happy to say that the surgery went well, and she spent the night in the ICU for recovery.

Jessica’s mom Charlene is still in the hospital, with home nowhere in sight. While she was initially admitted for heart failure — and a malfunctioning pacemaker/defibrillator — she has recently suffered stage four kidney failure and is now undergoing dialysis. It’s all we can do now to be there for her as much as possible.

I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again: this is where Namine’s virtual school shows its value. We’re in the hospital again — not for Namine this time, but Jessica’s mom. A day in the hospital doesn’t mean a day away from school, though. As long as we have Namine’s books and laptop, we can have school.

Jessica and her sisters had been planning today for some time. Today was cookie day… or perhaps, as I think of it, Cookie Day. We estimate a number of greater than six hundred cookies were made in the course of six hours. That’s not bad for having a single oven.